Cashew nuts cause more serious reactions than peanuts: study

September

Allergic reactions to cashew nuts are more severe than reactions to peanuts and the nut is also not that easy to avoid, says a new study.

“Cashew nuts present a considerable hazard, being hidden in a wide variety of commonly ingested foods, such as Asian meals, sweets, ice cream, cakes, and chocolates and they are increasingly used in commercially prepared pesto sauce instead of pine nuts,” wrote lead author Andrew Clark in the journal Allergy.

“Specific information on how to achieve nut avoidance should always be provided,” he added. Worryingly, a recent study showed that almost a third of nut-allergic children were unable to correctly identify the type of nut they were allergic to.

A peanut allergy can be so severe that only very tiny amounts can be enough to trigger a response. While cashews are used less extensively as ingredient than peanuts, the new study suggests that the allergic reaction to the former may be more severe than even that of peanuts.

The researchers, from Addenbrookes Hospital (Cambridge University Hospitals) and Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Kings Lynn, matched children whose worst ever reaction was to cashew nut (cashew group, 47 children) with children whose worst ever reaction was to peanut (peanut group, 94 children). The comparison matched the children according to sex, age of reaction and presentation, amount ingested, and asthma.

“This is the first study to employ case-matching to compare severity of peanut and cashew nut allergy and demonstrates increased severity of reactions to cashew nut,” said Clark.

The researchers note that wheezing and cardiovascular symptoms were reported more often during reactions in the cashew than compared to the peanut group, and that people allergic to cashews also received intramuscular adrenaline more frequently.

“Previous studies also showed cashew nut can cause severe reactions. The nut type which caused the worst reaction to date should be considered when providing emergency medication,” they concluded.